I had a plethora of onions that needed to be used up, it was cold, windy and rainy and my parents were coming for dinner. I pulled all the items that needed to be cooked before they spoiled and that was how this recipe was born.

Onion soup can be a bit tricky, and there’s different styles, ways of doing it. I had never done it like this before but I will definitely be doing it again.

Let’s take a quick look at how onions support good health before we go into the recipe.

Health Benefits

  • The phytochemicals in onions along with their vitamin C help improve immunity.
  • Regulates blood sugar due to chromium found in them.
  • Used to reduce inflammation and heal infections.
  • Raw onion lowers the production of bad cholesterol (LDL), promoting heart health.
  • A powerful flavonoid quercetin found in onions is known to play a significant role in preventing cancer and for some helps with their allergies.
  • Relieve symptoms of interstitial cystitis.
  • Reduces symptoms of prostatitis.
  • Onions provide the valuable prebiotic inulin and may help prevent ulcers. (Prebiotics are indigestible to you, but they help nourish beneficial bacteria in your body)

And this is a great recipe to get those onions in, even if you’re not a big fan. This soup is great on its own or with cauliflower “cheese” spread and einkorn water kefir bread. Or with whatever other combination you come up with. The beautiful part is you can make this soup vegan too if you choose or make it as I did; either way it will still taste fabulous.

This recipe feeds four adults nicely and does take awhile to make (1 hour, 20 minutes approximately) but don’t be deterred. It also keeps well in the fridge for up to five days and is awesome reheated so you can make it ahead for later. For 50 minutes you’re just going to leave the onions to do their thing. During that time I made the cauliflower “cheese” and grated zucchini for fritters which did not turn out so as fritters; more like hash, so back to the drawing board on that one.

Rustic Onion Soup

2 pounds of onions; mix it up if you can, use red, white, sweet, the more kinds the better

2 large shallots

4 medium to large cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons grass-fed butter (for vegan use raw, virgin coconut oil)

2 tablespoons avocado oil

1/4 cup white wine OR 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon einkorn OR coconut OR sprouted spelt flour

6 cups of bone broth; chicken OR beef (for vegan use vegetable broth)

1 teaspoon sea salt

pepper to taste

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon thyme

1 teaspoon rosemary

Mince the onions being sure to keep the size uniform. Or if you want to save time like I did, use a food processor. To a heavy bottomed soup pot on medium low heat, add the butter (or coconut oil) and avocado oil. As it warms and melts add the onions and stir well. Add the salt. (The onions are going to look like a lot but they will cook down and the salt helps draw the moisture out) Place a lid on the pan, leaving it slightly ajar for the first 30 minutes then remove the lid. Simmer the onions until the moisture is gone and they are a deep brown colour; approximately 50 minutes. (cooking them long and slow develops the rich, deep flavor)

Once there is no moisture left and they are a deep brown add the wine or apple cider vinegar to deglaze the pan; scrape any brown bits off the bottom of the pan is what deglaze means. Reduce the wine before adding anything else. Your onions will have decreased quite a bit by now.

Now add the bay leaf, rosemary and thyme. Stir gently to mix. Sprinkle with the flour and stir to mix well. Now add your broth, stir to mix and let it all simmer for about 20 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when the liquid is reduced down by about another third and the smell is drawing you in.

Toast up some sourdough or water kefir rye, sprouted spelt or einkorn bread slices. Laddle some soup into individual oven proof bowls. Place the bread on top of the soup; it will sink a bit, that’s a good thing! Now you can top the toast with grated raw grass-fed cheese such as Gouda, Swiss or Gruyere. For non dairy, nut free option use my cauliflower “cheese” spread. Place the bowls on a oven tray and broil for just a couple minutes. Stand there and watch it; seriously, you don’t want it to burn, just be a bit crispy. Take them out as soon as they start to get crispy and serve immediately. BEWARE the bowls will be hot!

Enjoy!

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